This article is focused on the following UN Sustainable development goal:
The justice system in Saudi Arabia is similar to other Islamic countries such as Afghanistan, Iran, and Qatar. It is based on the Shari’ah law for criminal and civil cases. The Shari’ah law is derived from 3 main sources which include the Holy Qur’an which is the holy book of Islam. Secondly, it is also derived from the Sunnah, which is the practices and sayings of the Prophet Muhammed during his lifetime. Thirdly, some parts of the Shari’ah law are also from the Ijma’, which is an agreement between different types of Muslim scholars on the principles that were involved in a particular case after the death of the Prophet Muhammed. Lastly, but not least, Qias, analogy, is the fourth source of the Shari’ah law. At the top of the judiciary system is the king who acts as the final court of appeal and as a source of pardons. In the western civilization, the justice system revolves more around the court and how the accused victim is prosecuted. So how are these two systems that different?
On March 12, 2022, The Saudi government executed 81 men, which was one of the biggest mass executions in recent years. 41 out of the 81 people who were executed were a part of the Shia Muslim community, who are a minority who were always subject to violence and systemic discrimination by the government. This was a show of the merciless law system which is encompassed within the country. The 81 men were apparently convicted of links to terrorist, murder, monitoring and targeting officials and expatriates, and other dangers to the public. During the court rulings for 5 out of the 41 men, it was found that they had been treated inhumanely and confessions were forcibly extracted from them. The judges for all 5 of these men sentenced them on the basis of ta’zir which gives them the power to handle the punishments with broad discretion.
Most of the families of the men were never notified by the government of the execution. Saudi Arabia has had a history of prior executions, 47 men were executed in 2016 and 37 men in 2019, to name a few. Saudi Arabia has the act of using the Shari’ah law as a national law with no penal code. Individuals accused of crimes in the country often face systematic violations of fair trial rights and due process. Some due process violations in the court and criminal justice system include elongated periods of detention with the lack of charge or trial, a lack of legal help, pressure to sign confessions and accept fixed prison sentences to avoid extended unlawful arrests. The government has also been heavily criticized at times for its reliance on torture-based confessions for the sole purpose of convictions in some cases.
Saudi Arabia evidently uses a harsher justice system to enforce laws throughout the country to help control its crimes. Most of the decisions within the law in the country are based on following the Shari’ah law which can lead to be cruel and grim at times. In the western society, law is organized and lead mostly by the court in which the judge and jury have the last say and many have a chance to repent for their crimes.
Remember, change starts with you.
Arabia, Saudi. “The Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia.” Legal and Judicial Structure | The Embassy of The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, https://www.saudiembassy.net/legal-and-judicial-structure-0#:~:text=Since%20Saudi%20Arabia%20is%20an,as%20a%20source%20of%20pardon.
Watch, Human Rights. “Saudi Arabia: Mass Execution of 81 Men.” Human Rights Watch, 10 June 2022, https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/03/15/saudi-arabia-mass-execution-81-men.
Comments